Mental disorders in the primary care setting. Research priorities for the 1990s

New research directions should be pursued during the coming years if mental illness is to be properly managed in primary medical care practice. Among needed studies are those pertaining to the validity of diagnostic classifications specific to psychiatric morbidity in ambulatory medical settings; the nature of clinical decision-making by primary care physicians; how diagnostic formulations influence treatment choices; and the effectiveness of treatments transferred from the specialist to generalist settings.